How much does a child cost? British academics recently asked themselves the question and ended up providing an answer to it in April 2022, then reported the women’s monthly Cosmopolitan, on its French site. And even if the researchers of the investment company MoneyFarm, at the origin of the study, decided to cover the charges incurred only until the 20th birthday of the little blond head in question, it is clear that a child… it is still very expensive. On average, they estimate, the average cost is estimated at between 156,000 and 380,000 euros – the price of a house, in short. In France, according to the Ministry of Health and Solidarity, you should rather count on around 180,000 euros.
Therefore, it is difficult to argue that a child is not (also) a financial burden. This state of affairs accepted, “compensation for the cost of the child appears to be central in the definition of family and social policies”, observes the ministry. It is precisely for this purpose that a number of aids exist. Some, already mentioned in our columns, come under the Family Allowance Fund (Caf). Summary.
Family allowances, explains the Caf on its official website, are numerous. They are, for the most part, available from the second dependent child in mainland France. In the Dom-Tom, it is true from the first. Children must not be over the age of 20 and the exact amount paid will depend on the number of the reality of the charge of soul as well as the resources of the household.
We should also mention the young child reception benefit (PAJE), which includes four aids in total. First there is the birth or adoption bonus, then the basic allowance, the shared child education benefit and finally the free choice of childcare supplement. It is aimed at all parents who have, are expecting or adopt a child, but some helping hand (premiums) are paid only once. The benefit and the supplement cannot be received at the same time.
Of course, there is also the back-to-school allowance and the family supplement, both of which are means-tested, but also the family support allowance, large-family benefits, social action for children, youth and parenthood, etc.
It is not only at the time of birth or the start of the school year that having a child is expensive. What the authorities have obviously identified very well, since having a child must be declared to the tax authorities. “Your minor children are considered your dependents. However, in certain situations, specific rules apply. For example, if your child reaches majority during the year or if you have separated”, can we read on the official website of the public service.
It is technically possible, continue the Bercy teams on the website of the Ministry of Economy, Finance and Economic and Digital Sovereignty, to benefit from an income tax credit linked to one’s children. Several scenarios allow you to claim different boosts. The first and perhaps best known is the tax credit for child care expenses. If the child is under six years old on January 1 of the year of opposition and is cared for in a crèche, daycare center or directly by qualified personnel (approved childminder, for example). The amount of the tax credit, we can still read on the platform, amounts to 50% of the expenses incurred within the limit of 2,300 euros. Another fairly well-known boost: the tax reduction for tuition fees.
However, underlines Le Revenu on its site, one of the most important mechanisms from which French women and men can benefit is none other than the family quotient. Household income is subject to the progressive tax scale… After being divided by the number of people in the household in question. A child, however, only counts for half a share, before the third born or adopted. This is how a couple with two children could save up to 3,140 euros in 2021.
Because having a child is a job in itself, it is not uncommon to see careers cut short after a birth. This kind of event is obviously provided for by the French pension system, observes Retirement Insurance on its site.
In practice, the platform recalls, individuals on maternity or adoption leave do not contribute to their retirement. That being said, it is still possible for them to validate quarters for retirement, after 90 days of daily allowances. That being said, as Planet was able to explain, these are assimilated quarters, which therefore do not allow the final amount of the pension to be inflated.
It is also possible, fortunately, to benefit from an increase in the duration of insurance for children. Thus four quarters can be attributed to the title of maternity or adoption and four others to the title of the education of the blond head in question. In addition, in the event of a large family (have at least three children), the amount of the pension is automatically increased by 10%. Without forgetting, of course, the increase in the survivor’s pension which can be claimed by widows and widowers who do not receive a personal pension, who are responsible for the child within the meaning of health insurance and are not yet 67 years old. .
